


my wonderful brilliant children

by killerqueenwrites



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen, Happy Ending, Ironfam rights, Parent Tony Stark, Soul Stone, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Lives, Violent Rejection of Canon, because I said so, but that's okay because neither did the russos, handwavey science, idk what, it's doing something
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:47:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21875401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/killerqueenwrites/pseuds/killerqueenwrites
Summary: The bemused expression on Thanos’ face would almost be worth it by itself, the sheer dumbfounded confusion that he lost, Tony did it, he lost. More important than that, though, is the reason Tony’s here at all: his friends, his family, his children.
Relationships: Morgan Stark & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 28
Kudos: 365
Collections: Irondad and his Iron kids





	my wonderful brilliant children

**Author's Note:**

> have this as a thank you for 200 tumblr followers and 200 user subscriptions on ao3! I love all of you! 💕 you can also read this on my tumblr, @akillerqueenwrites
> 
> so this has been simmering for aaaages, purely because i wanted to know what morgan said to tony in that deleted scene where she was a teenager, AND because i saw in a behind-the-scenes video that katherine langford, the actress supposed to play teen morgan, was on set with rdj and tom holland. however, i promised that i’d never write to endgame canon again, so. this happened. (this was written before that weird-ass deleted scene came out, obviously)

Tony doesn’t know what he expected. He knew it was going to hurt, but no amount of _knowing_ is enough, could ever be enough. This is six supernovas tearing through him, etching scorching scars into his flesh, fusing his suit to his skin.

The bemused expression on Thanos’ face would almost be worth it by itself, the sheer dumbfounded confusion that he lost, Tony did it, he lost. More important than that, though, is the reason Tony’s here at all: his friends, his family, his children.

It’s for them, always for them, that he raises his hand, the Stones glinting in his gauntlet, and snarls.

Thanos blinks.

“And I…am…Iron Man.”

The world goes white.

* * *

Tony opens his eyes to orange: a strange sunset sky, the floor a still pool of water.

“Mr Stark?”

He whips around at the voice, just like he had five years earlier, expecting his world to fall apart all over again.

But Peter’s smiling, tears in his eyes, no traces of the battle that Tony had just ended with a snap of his fingers. He looks exactly as Tony remembers, as he existed in memories for years, as Tony had seen him only moments before, rambling a million miles a minute. “You did it,” the kid whispers, his nanotech suit glinting in the orange light. “We won, Mr Stark.”

“It worked?” Tony matches his volume, something reverent creeping into his tone. He hadn’t been too sure it would, because his last thoughts had been something like _AHHHHHHH!_ “One future, right? This is it?”

Peter nods. “This is it.”

Tony stumbles forward, more from shock than anything else; every injury seems to be inexplicably healed, his body feeling younger than it has in years. He reaches Peter and pulls him close, relishing in a hug that lasts longer than a few seconds, that isn’t interrupted by a battle raging around them.

“I love you so much,” Tony whispers, wishing he’d said it when they were both alive. Because he’s dead, of course; what else could this be? “You have to know that – I love you.”

“I love you too,” Peter murmurs, tucking his head into Tony’s neck, the way Tony had always imagined he would. God, if only they didn’t have to lose each other to get here.

“Dad?”

Tony’s breath catches. He’s never heard the voice before, and yet he knows exactly who it belongs to. Peter pulls back, still smiling, and nods to something behind his shoulder. Tony turns.

There’s a girl about Peter’s age, with red-brown hair and a dusting of freckles across her nose. She’s wearing a necklace in the shape of an arc reactor, and she’s staring at Tony with deep brown eyes. His eyes.

“Hey, Morguna,” he says, his voice cracking.

She smiles, and her eyes glisten. “Hi, Dad.”

“God, you…” He reaches out, cups her cheeks. “You’re so _big_.”

Morgan laughs.

“And beautiful. Look at you. Just like your mom.”

“Well, she always says I look like you.” Morgan looks past him to smile at Peter. “Peter says I have your eyes.”

“You met him, then?”

“Best big brother in the world.”

“And that means a lot,” Peter says, walking slowly over to stand beside her, “because I’m not even her only big brother.”

Tony chokes out a laugh, a tear spilling out and rolling down his cheek. His kids. Peter, whole and alive. Morgan, grown up and so so beautiful. He reaches out and pulls them both into his arms.

“My wonderful, brilliant children.” Tony presses a kiss to each of their cheeks. “This was all for you, you know that? Everything was for you.”

“We know,” Morgan says.

“We always knew,” Peter adds, “but why does this feel like goodbye?”

Tony pulls back.

“It doesn’t have to be.”

“It doesn’t?”

“No one would blame you if you rested,” Morgan says softly. “You’ve earned it.”

“I’d blame me.”

Peter smiles. “Yeah, that’s…on-brand, I think Parker would say.”

Disappointment washes over Tony. “You’re not really them.”

“No.” Not-Peter smiles gently. It’s a warm parental smile, the kind Tony’s mom would normally wear, but it’s on his son’s face. It’s the kind of smile Tony should be sending Peter, not the other way around. “Were we convincing, though?”

“Yeah.” Tony sighs. He thinks he knew from the instant he opened his eyes, recognised the raw power humming through the vision of his kids as something entirely otherworldly, but it was easier to pretend that he didn’t. “Yeah.”

“I know Peter well,” Peter says. “He was with me for five years.”

“And we watched your daughter her whole life.” Morgan smiles, like she knows how Tony’s head is spinning. “You could have the real thing, you know.”

“I can stay? You were being serious?”

“It won’t be easy,” Peter warns.

Tony snorts. “Well, nothing ever is.” His smile drops. “But I get to – my kids? Everyone?”

“Will all be okay, whatever you choose. But I think you know what you want.”

“Then I…I want to stay.”

“As if there was ever any doubt,” Peter says with a grin. Even as a shapeshifting cosmic entity, the kid knows him too well.

“Never.”

Morgan steps forward, her eyes glowing silver. “The universe thanks you, Tony Stark. The Stones owe you this. Balance restored – one life can slip through unnoticed. Or perhaps two.”

Tony has to look away; her gaze _hurts_ , a burning beam of celestial intent.

“And remember,” Peter says, his voice echoing like he’s been saying these words for a thousand years, “a soul can always be exchanged for a soul.” He reaches out to press his fingers against Tony’s forehead, and everything goes black.

* * *

He gasps back to life, his chest rattling, and his ears are instantly filled with piercing screams.

“Get back!” someone’s yelling. “Kid, no–“

Tony coughs weakly and peels open his eyes. Rhodey is staring down at him with something approaching horror. “Hi, honeybear.”

“Jesus Christ,” Rhodey says. “Jesus. _Jesus_.”

A wiggle of his legs tells Tony he’s being carried. “You can put me down now, platypus.”

“I can put you down,” Rhodey repeats.

“I can walk.”

“You can walk? The corpse of my best friend is telling me he can walk. Uh-huh. Okay.”

Corpse? “Very much not a corpse.”

“Yes, absolutely a corpse until about thirty seconds ago. An hour. Your heart stopped beating an _hour_ ago, Tony.”

“An hour?” He’d been with the kids for what felt like a few minutes.

“Yeah, an hour.” Rhodey’s eyes start to fill with tears, just like when he’d caught Tony’s eye across the battlefield after the portals opened and their suits had announced they were connected to Karen again. “Tony, you…you were _dead_.”

Tony looks around for the first time, and finds himself surrounded by just about everyone: Steve, pale and shaky; Clint, his bow still raised; Carol, looking horrified; Nebula, Strange, his expression relieved, Thor, T’Challa. Finally, his gaze lands on the other two people he wants most: Pepper, her arms thrown out to shield Peter, who’s peering around her anyway.

Both of their faces are red and blotchy. Peter’s nose is bleeding and he’s covered in grime. Pepper’s usually immaculate hair is a mess. They’re the best thing Tony’s ever seen.

“Mr Stark?” Peter whispers, breaking the quiet.

“Hi, buddy.” Tony matches his tone, partly because he’s wary of breaking the reverent hush, like all this might disappear if he moves too suddenly, and partly because the kid looks one loud noise away from a heart attack.

“Oh, my God,” Pepper breathes. “Holy shit. Holy shit.”

“Pep–“

She drops her arm, letting Peter stumble forward a couple of steps. Rhodey finally puts him down, not letting go completely, and helps him the rest of the way.

Peter crashes into his chest with an, “Oof,” and hugs him so tightly that Tony hears something crack.

“Kid – Peter – need to breathe–“

He expects something emotional, heartfelt, the reunion he and Peter deserved.

“You have grey hairs.”

“I – what?” Tony laughs, but it comes out like a sob. That’s his Peter. “Yeah. Yeah, five years, kiddo. God, five years.” There’s a hand in his hair, and he looks up to see Pepper, smiling a beautiful teary smile. “Hi, honey.”

“Really?” She lets out a shaky laugh. “You came back from the dead. I expect something better than ‘hi’.”

In answer, Tony holds out one of his arms, the other still wrapped around Peter, and pulls her into the embrace. “I love you all. So much.” He feels Pepper kiss the side of his head, Peter huddle further into his chest.

Rhodey snorts. “Yeah, against our better judgement, we love you too.”

Tony grins, burying his face in Peter’s hair – and then he remembers. “The Stones!”

“Whoa, what–?”

“Steve has them.” Pepper nods in that direction. “He’s going to put them back where they belong.”

“The Soul Stone – you can use it–“ Tony’s stumbling over words in his urgency. “Peter said – we can get Nat back!”

“I said what?”

“I’ll explain later, I’ll explain everything later.” And just like that, his sudden, frantic burst of energy is spent. He’s so damn tired. “Right now, I just – I need to go home.”

“Okay,” Pepper says gently, “we can do that.”

“Let’s go before anything else weird happens,” Rhodey mutters, and Peter laughs. Tony had missed that laugh, had missed _him_ , more than he can put into words.

* * *

Tony sleeps for forty hours. When he wakes up, Pepper is curled up beside him, Rhodey is making breakfast, and Happy and May are on the porch watching Peter play with Morgan.

“And Stephen Strange is here, too,” Pepper says, “just to check nothing stuck around after you…magically healed. You weren’t a pretty corpse, honey.”

“Oh.” He winces. “Sorry. I wish you hadn’t seen that. Or Peter.”

“Don’t worry.” Pepper strokes the back of her hand down his right cheek with a smile. “That’s not our last memory of you.”

But it could have been, if some weird celestial vision of his kids hadn’t given him a second chance. So he sits on the couch and lets Strange examine him without complaint.

“Did you know?” he asks quietly, conscious of Pepper hovering in the kitchen. “Did you see this?”

“You using the gauntlet was the one future we needed,” Strange replies. “Hold your arms out, please. After that, there were two possibilities. You stayed, or…”

“Or,” Tony says. _No one would blame you if you rested._

“But you would have been able to say goodbye. The universe isn’t that cruel.”

Tony sighs. “I saw my kids.”

To his credit, Strange doesn’t bat an eyelid, just nods.

“Well, not really them. Something else. Peter was…the same, but Morgan was grown up and – I just knew I had to stay. I had to stay for them.” Another nod. “What, you don’t think I’m losing it? Seeing shit?”

“No one can understand how the Stones work, Tony. I couldn’t say whether they took you somewhere else or whether it just happened in your head, but it happened.” Strange nods to himself. “It sounds to me like they were pushing you more one way than the other. And they healed you. You saving the universe put them in a good mood.”

“You’re talking like they’re…sentient, or something.”

“Again, no one knows. The Soul Stone is certainly something else, but as for the others – I don’t know, as much as I hate that phrase. There’s so much we’ll never know. Just be thankful, I suppose.” Strange smiles. “I can’t find any problems. You’ve been very lucky.”

“Yeah.” Tony rolls his right shoulder and gives him a grateful smile. “Yeah.”

* * *

He is. He is lucky. He was given another chance. He gets to stay, to take a seat on the dock as Peter and Morgan sit on the end, dangling their feet and talking. Well, more like Morgan is interrogating Peter at light speed.

_Best big brother in the world._

“So where _were_ you?”

“Um…”

“Because Daddy said a bad man took you away, but you’re here now. Did he give you back?”

“Uh, well, your dad saved me. And everyone else.”

“Good. He missed you. I think it made him sad.”

Peter doesn’t seem to know how to answer that, so Tony gets up and pads to the end of the dock, slipping in between them.

“Ears burning?” Peter says with a weak smile.

“My dad sense was tingling.” Tony hoists Morgan into his lap and slings his other arm around Peter’s shoulders. After a second’s hesitation, Peter leans into him.

Maybe the kid needs time, but that’s okay. Tony has time. He watches the breeze stir up tiny ripples on the lake for a moment and remembers an amber pool beneath his feet. No – these are his real children, not pretend versions of them. Peter’s chest is rising and falling against his. Morgan is tapping her legs on his shins.

“My wonderful, brilliant children,” he says, all of them bathed in warm sun rather than strange orange light. Peter glances up and quickly away again. “Yes, that includes you. Of course you’re my kid.”

“Yeah, you’re my brother,” Morgan agrees. “Daddy told me.”

“Oh,” Peter breathes, but he doesn’t sound offended. “Yeah, I – I guess I am.”

Tony smiles and presses a gentle kiss to Peter’s cheek, another to the crown of Morgan’s head. His kids, safe and alive, their lives stretching out in front of them in a mended world. This, he decides as Morgan nestles into his chest and Peter lays his head on his shoulder and the fall sun warns him to the bone, this is resting.

**Author's Note:**

> i'm on tumblr @akillerqueenwrites, or my main blog @akillerqueenyouare. come say hi, ask questions, leave prompts or just yell at me. thank you for reading!


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